Marlee scrambled to the other side of the van and then slid into the backseat next to Susie.

Her mother slid Susie's door shut and got in the driver's side. "That piece of gravel is right there at the surface. I'm sure I can get that out, but not here." Her glance took in the busy late night gas station. The look on her face said she must have realized how different the night was, too.

Marlee laughed, a nervous laugh, but then said, "Uh, oh. You're in trouble. Surgery in Mom's kitchen usually hurts."

Susie forced a smile, because she knew Marlee was trying to cheer her up. She also caught the worried glance Marlee and her mother exchanged and knew she'd have to start talking soon.

Marlee's mother didn't ask her any questions on the way to their house, but they did stop at Susie's car to leave a note that said the car ran out of gas. They also left the McAllister's home phone number taped inside the dash just in case. They'd deal with the car later.

Once she'd hobbled inside the McAllister's kitchen, leaning on Marlee's shoulder the whole way, she sat down and knew it was time to explain why she was sitting in their kitchen with banged up feet at what turned out to be midnight. The bright lights of the kitchen made her suddenly feel unworthy. She felt as low as the low life's she'd seen out and about that night. Mrs. McAllister must think she was the lowest of Rican trash. Susie hid her face behind her hands when she started crying again. Dios, she just wanted to disappear.

Marlee pulled a chair alongside her and rubbed her back. "It's okay, Susie. You're okay now."

"You're safe here," Marlee's mother added.

Without looking up Susie choked, "Can I--" She cleared her throat and tried again. "Water?" was all she could get out.

Marlee's mother set a cold glass of water in front of her in a flash. Once Susie caught her breath, she lifted her head and took a sip of the water. She coughed when it didn't go down the right way, but tried again, that time successfully. She was so thirsty. Marlee's mother handed her a box of tissues. Susie took one and wiped at her eyes. She took another and blew her nose.

Marlee continued to rub her back.

Susie smiled her gratitude at both Marlee and her mother. They both smiled back sympathetically. They were probably afraid Susie would break down again if they actually spoke.

"Okay, honey," Marlee's mom said to Susie after a while. "I have to clean up those feet."

"No, I can--"

"C'mon. Hand those feet over." Marlee's mother set her mouth firmly, but the tenderness still showed in her features.

Marlee laughed. "There's no use struggling in Mom's operating room. I'll get you a bullet to bite, okay?"

For the first time in hours, Susie laughed. Genuinely. "Okay."

Following her mother's instructions, Marlee got a bucket, some old towels, hydrogen peroxide, anti-biotic ointment, and bandages. After first rinsing off her feet with warm water and then washing them gently, Marlee's mother used tweezers to dig for the piece of gravel lodged in Susie's foot. White hot pain shot through her foot, but the pain only lasted for a moment and then it was over. Marlee's mother held up the piece of rock between the ends of the tweezers.

"It looks like an igneous rock," Susie said with a slight laugh.

Marlee laughed with her. "You really are a rock hound."

Susie nodded. "Told you."

Marlee's mother cleaned the wounds with peroxide, applied the ointment, and then wrapped Susie's feet up in gauze. Susie's feet throbbed, but felt infinitely better.

Marlee's mother instructed her to keep her feet elevated. "I don't think we need to take you to the emergency room, but we'll regroup in the morning."

"I can stay?" Susie heard the relief in her own voice.

"Of course, honey, but--"

"I know. I need to call my parents." Susie smiled inside. Marlee's mother kept calling her, "honey," and it felt good.

Marlee's mother nodded. "I don't want to intrude on your personal life, but maybe I should call them."

Susie shot Marlee a look. That would be the easiest way out, but she knew she couldn't do that. The easy way out wasn't always easy. Just that morning she wanted to be in control of her own life, so she decided that it was her responsibility to talk to her parents by herself.

"I'll call them," Susie said and then turned to Marlee. "Can you call Sam? Tell her I'm okay and that I'll call her in the morning."

"I'm on it. She's probably still driving around. She was going to drive all the way here, but I told her I'd call if you showed up."

"I almost made it." Susie shrugged.

Marlee smiled. "Yeah, you almost did." Susie couldn't read the expression in Marlee's eyes. Concern? Love? Both. Definitely both.

Marlee's mother pulled the cordless phone off its base. She handed it to Susie. "I'll be in the other room if you need me."

"Thank you so much, Mrs. McAllister. I don't mean to cause problems."

Marlee's mother put a hand up. "You're fine." She gestured toward the phone. "I think you have bigger things to worry about right now, though, don't you?"

After Marlee's mother left the room, Susie turned toward Marlee.

"I'm sorry."

"Are you okay?" Marlee caressed Susie's cheek. "Sam said you had some kind of fight with your mom."

Susie sighed and told Marlee what had happened in the kitchen. "My worst nightmare came true. My mother thinks I'm 'unnatural.' That I'm a freak of nature."

"I don't think you're a freak of nature." Marlee leaned in and kissed Susie softly on the lips. It wasn't a passionate kiss, but a healing one. "And if you're a freak of nature, then so am I."

"Te quiero, mi vida. I can't wait until we're the boss of us, and no one else is." Susie looked at the phone trying to find the courage to punch in the numbers.

Marlee pulled her cell phone out of her pocket. "Let me call Sam." She gave Susie a quick hug and tapped in Sam's number. She returned her hand to Susie's back and rubbed gently.

"Wish me luck." Susie steeled herself for round two.

Chapter Fifteen.

I Think She Knows SUSIE PRESSED THE phone to her ear. She held her breath when she heard her father's voice.

"Susana? Is that you?" Concern was etched in his voice.

"Si, Papi, soy yo." Susie teared up again. Marlee's hand rubbed her back.

"Estas bien?"

"I'm fine. I'm at Marlee's house." She wanted to say she was sorry, but she didn't quite know how.

There was a short pause and then he asked, "Que paso, mariposita? Tu madre esta muy enojada."

"Oh, really? Mami's angry?" Her gut started to simmer. "Is she angry at me or at herself?" This ought to be good. Susie squirmed in the kitchen chair. Marlee was sitting next to her talking quietly to Sam on her cell phone.

Her father sighed into the telephone. "You and I need to talk before you come home."

"Okay." Susie slumped in the kitchen chair. Her mother must hate her.

Neither of them spoke for a while until her father said, "Are you sure you're okay?"

Susie heard the uncertainty in his voice as if he wasn't sure what to do.

"I ran out of gas, Papi."

"Oh, no. Did you call for a tow truck?"

"No, I was close to a gas station, so I called Marlee. She and her mother came to get me." Okay, so she left out a lot of details, but he didn't need to know everything.

She told him that Marlee's mother was going to take her back to the car in the morning to put some gas in and see if they could get it started. If it still wouldn't start, she'd have it towed. He told her to have the car towed to Clarksonville since it was almost there already, and that he would call back in the morning to check up on her.

She hung up the phone feeling better that he wasn't running around frantically worried about her, but she felt rotten that she and her mother were not only miles apart literally, but emotionally as well.

Susie stared at the refrigerator, not ready to join the living yet.

"Are you hungry?" Marlee asked, apparently noticing her fixation on the large appliance.

Susie smiled. "Nah. I'm just tired. And I have to go to the bathroom."

"C'mon." Marlee grabbed an arm and helped her stand up.

Susie winced as she put her full weight on her throbbing feet.

"Mom?" Marlee called. "We need you as a crutch."

Marlee's mother came in and, together, they helped Susie to the bathroom.

"Do you need help in there?" Marlee asked from the other side of the door.

"No," Susie said with a laugh. "I remember how to do this all by myself." After she had relieved her aching bladder, she realized that her mouth tasted like fertilizer. "Hey, Marlee?"

"Yeah?"

Susie smiled. Marlee was still right outside the door. "Do you have a spare toothbrush?"

"Yeah, hang on."

Susie took that opportunity to wash her face and hands. She even washed all the way up her arms trying to wash the evening's memories away.

"Here you go," Marlee called from the other side of the door.

Susie opened the door wide and then shuffled back. She beckoned for Marlee to come in with her. Marlee looked over her shoulder, presumably to see if her mother was watching, and then stepped in quietly and clicked the door shut behind her.

Susie opened her arms wide. She would have grabbed Marlee immediately, but it hurt too damn much to move on her feet. Marlee filled her arms willingly, and Susie kissed her once quickly and then pulled her into a tight hug. "Thank you for being my knight in shining armor tonight."

Marlee squeezed Susie hard. "You're welcome, my damsel in distress."

"I've never been anyone's damsel before."

"I've never been anyone's knight."

Susie released Marlee, but didn't let her get away. She leaned in for another kiss. If she wasn't so tired, the kiss might have escalated into more, but she pulled back and stroked Marlee's cheek. "Te quiero, mi cabellera."

"Y yo te quiero tu tambien. Mucho."

Susie tried not to laugh at Marlee's butchered Spanish. "You've been practicing your Spanish."

Marlee nodded. "How else am I going to talk to my future grandmother-in-law?"

They both jumped when Marlee's mother called for Marlee. "Marlee?"

"Be right there, Mom." She opened the bathroom door and started to leave, but then darted back in to hand a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a bag of clothes to Susie.

"Thanks," Susie said to Marlee's retreating back.

Marlee turned and flashed a quick grin at her. She shut the door behind her.

After Susie brushed her teeth, she changed into one of Marlee's old t-shirts and a pair of her sweats. The t-shirt was a little tight across her chest, but she was too tired to care. Once she was dressed, she hobbled out of the bathroom. Marlee was waiting right outside and ushered her toward the couch in the living room. Marlee's mother had apparently been busy, because the couch was made up for Susie to sleep on.

"Thanks for letting me crash here," Susie said to Marlee's mother.

"No problem. If you need anything in the night, just yell up the stairs."

"Thanks, Mrs. M."

Marlee's mother gave Susie one of those mom smiles that said everything would be okay. "Marlee, I'm heading up. Don't stay up too late."

"Okay, Mom."

They listened as Marlee's mother made her way up the stairs. As soon as the bedroom door clicked shut, Susie slid over to make room for Marlee on the couch. Marlee snuggled in next to her and they lay face-to-face. Susie hadn't realized how tense she had been until Marlee smiled and the tension eased. It would be back in the morning, she knew, but for now, it was dissipating.

Marlee reached up and caressed Susie's face. "You can live here with me if you want," she said barely above a whisper. Her eyes were sympathetic, but there was desperation in them, too.

"Someday we'll live together, mi vida, someday."